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About this project

Thanks for checking out our Phil The Pill Kickstarter Campaign! We’re excited to introduce you to our game, our villain Hank The Stank, our very own Princess Polycorn, the pillbug inhabitants of Pillville and, of course, our hero Phil The Pill. Our goal for this campaign is to raise the necessary funds to complete and launch Phil The Pill on iOS and Android. We look forward to hearing your feedback, thoughts, ideas and suggestions. Let us know what we can do to earn your support!

Welcome to Pillville! Ruled by the fair Princess Polycorn, Pillville is home to a peaceful colony of kind hearted, fun-loving pillbugs. One such joy filled pillbug is our hero, Phil The Pill! Phil is a pillbug who spends his days rolling ‘round the kingdom, relaxin' with friends and devouring delicious sugary snacks. Pillbugs love their sweets.

Unfortunately, the peace, quiet and serenity of Pillville is under attack! Hank The Stank, a downright dirty rotten stink bug and his brood of Stenchmen have infiltrated Pillville and are spreading stench across the land. The poor, defenseless pillbugs have no choice but to retreat into their shells to escape Hank’s nauseating smell.

Pillville is no longer the joyful paradise it once was. It's a wasteland consumed by vile stink bug stench. Even the once bright and happy Polycorn Palace has been converted into a filthy, pungent bowling alley. Hank The Stank, a fierce, competitive bowler now spends his days on the lanes using frightened, rolled up pillbugs as bowling balls.

Captured and locked in an airtight bowling trophy, Princess Polycorn’s magical powers have been rendered useless and there is nothing she can do to save her kingdom! All hope would be lost, if it weren’t for the severe allergies and clogged sinuses of Phil The Pill! Even Hank The Stank’s aromatic stench cannot infiltrate the stuffed nasal passages of Phil’s nose!

Pillville and it’s sugary snacks have begun to wither and rot. Phil The Pill, immune to the stench, is our only hope! Be a hero, support our Kickstarter Campaign and help Phil The Pill save Pillville!

At its core, Phil the Pill is a top down action-puzzle maze explorer game. Using intuitive swipes, taps and multitouch gestures you control Phil as he navigates a series of mazes riddled with hazards, traps, tricks and baddies. As you might expect, Phil's main mode of transportation is rolling. Swiping in any direction, Phil takes off, rolling at a brisk pace, till he hits an obstruction. A quick tap stops Phil and brings him to an upright action stance where he can punch or fire off a variety of weapons to bust through walls or take out baddies. Don’t stand around for long though, you gotta keep on rolling on to stay ahead of the creeping cloud of stench that chases you towards the finish of every level!

SAVE THE PILLBUGSEach maze has 3 pillbugs to save. Saving all the pillbugs isn't required, but come on, have a heart.

SWEEP THE COINS

Coins are scattered generously throughout the levels. Collect them for extra points, equipment upgrades and to use in Bert's Shop.

SEARCH FOR CRUDPillbugs love random crud. Many levels have a hidden piece-o-crud. Find them all for bonus loot.

FIND THE EXIT

Like the ancient proverb says, In order to begin the next level you must first exit the level you are in… Make it to the exit portal to unlock the next level.

Puzzles become less forgiving and more intense as you travel deeper into the game. Choosing a strategic path, conserving your weapons and managing hazards are key to your survival. The following level feature overview will prove useful when strategizing your way through the levels.

WORM HOLESThese holes can be used as secret underground transport paths but beware, there’s no telling where you’ll popup after entering one. You’ll also want to be cautious of the dwellers that occasionally pop out of them!

LASER GATES & SWITCHES

Each laser gate has a color coordinated switch that must be pressed before passing through it. Running into the gates isn't a good idea, take our word for it!

CONVEYOR BELTS

Conveyor belts are a one way street. They’ll get you moving in one direction, but don’t even think about trying to go back!

STEEL BLOCKSSteel blocks are impassable. Don't punch or waste your ammo on them. No matter what you do, they won't go away!

GRASS BLOCKSThey might slow you down but they'll never stop you. You can punch right through these blocks!

STONE BLOCKSThese blocks require a little more firepower. Stock up on bombs to clear stone blocks out of your way.

WOOD BLOCKSWood blocks are a little too tough for Phils' fists, but any other weapon will blast right through ‘em.

A variety of destructive weapons will be available when you need them most.

Don’t underestimate the power of an insect's fists. Phil can punch out enemies, and through dirt walls. Watch out for stone though, it can be a little rough on the knuckles.

As you may have guessed, bombs go boom! And take out most things in a close vicinity. Bombs can destroy dirt, stone, wood and enemies.

A basic semi automatic projectile weapon, the pea shooter is handy for ranged shots as well as blasting through dirt, wood and enemies rapidly.

The missile launcher turns a bomb into a ranged weapon! Use missiles to blast blocks and baddies from a distance.

Sometimes you gotta fight fire with fire; or in this case, stink with barf. The barf cannon sends a glob of barf over an obstacle where it splats down with nasty force taking out whatever it hits.

It may be pretty, but the rainbow ray should be used with caution. It has the ability to take out every destructible item in its path in a high-powered laser-like fashion.

Designed for the most dire situations, the smart bomb has the ability to clear an entire level, leaving virtually no chance for Hank’s Stenchlings to beat you. They’re rare so use ‘em sparingly.

Life in Pillville has become very difficult and even the strongest Pillbug needs an occasional “pick me up.” As Phil fights his way through level after level, he’ll need power ups to lift his spirits and keep him alive.

Power ups can be found throughout the game, or are available for purchase in Bert’s Shop using coins you’ve collected along the way. Bert can be a bit of a slimy guy, but he has a knack for being there when you need him most.

HEALTH REFILLRunnin’ on empty? Fill 'er up and bring Phil’s health back to 100%.

STINK REPELLENTTake your time, fumigate and relax! This repellent completely removes the stinky creeping stench from the level you’re on.

INVINCIBILITYThe name says it all! This one renders Phil invincible for the remainder of the level.

CRUD FINDERThis handy gadget reveals where hidden crud can be found. Nothing hit's the spot like a little crud!

If obstacles are opportunities, there are a LOT of opportunities in Pillville! Rescuing a princess, defeating a stink bug and setting a colony of Pillbugs free is pretty hard work when danger lurks ‘round ever corner. Keep on your toes and watch for these hazards.

CREEPING STENCHThis green gaseous cloud is found on every level of the game. As Phil races to collect coins, nab weapons and free his fellow pillbugs, the creeping stench wafts further into the maze, pushing Phil higher and higher on the screen. If Phil can’t complete his mission prior to the level being fully engulfed… All hope is lost.

SPIKED WALLSAvoid these sharp spikes at all costs! Nothing ruins your morning like impaling yourself on a wall!

As the stink continues to rise along with the difficulty of each new level, you’ll find that Phil requires new and improved gear to keep him fighting for the Pillbugs of Pillville. Use the coins you've earned to keep Phil up to code.

Makes Phil tougher and less vulnerable to various level hazards.

Helps Phil punch through grass tiles and take down enemies with fewer punches.

Makes Phil faster! Swipe once for normal speed and a second time on a straightaway for a super sweet speed boost!

Well, there you have it… The future of Pillville, Princess Polycorn’s freedom, Phil’s very life and the health and safety of an entire colony of good hearted Pillbugs is in your hands. So we ask once more for you to look into your heart… Back this Kickstarter Campaign and help Phil The Pill save his world.

Oh… And get some super sweet Phil The Pill swag while you’re at it. Check out the rewards below!

Kickstarting apps can be challenging. Apple doesn't really like developers to sell their game outside of their system and we understand that. For that reason, all of our reward tiers include a free download of the game when it is released. We tried to create rewards that we would want if we were backing the project. If you think of something that we haven't included, send us a comment and we will strongly consider adding it!

Receive an exclusive set of Phil The Pill wallpapers for desktop and mobile devices. Additionally, we’ll notify you when the game is released (both iOS and Android versions) and invite you to download it for absolutely FREE.

Not only will we thank you for your support, we’ll ask the whole world to do the same by adding your name to the game credits! You’ll be famous and infamous! (Tier one rewards included)

Upon successful completion of this campaign, you’ll receive a pre-launch preview of Phil The Pill and exclusive access to our super secret development forum. As a member of our forum you are invited to share your ideas to help us finalize development of the game. This early preview includes the games first two worlds (54 levels) on either Mac or PC platforms. (First 2 tier rewards included)

Pieces of Crud are hidden in various nooks and crannies all over Pillville. This digital treasure map shows you where to find each and every piece of crud to give you a leg up on the competition! Each time you find one, massive bonuses will be rewarded. Bonuses will allow you to upgrade Phil faster and get many more power-ups on your quest to save Pillville. (First 3 tier rewards included)

Time to take your home decor to a whole new level! Get an exclusive full color Backer’s Only Phil the Pill wall poster mailed to you shortly after the completion of this campaign! (First 3 tier rewards included)

Get a professionally screen-printed Phil the Pill T-Shirt. After the campaign ends, we'll send a survey that gives you the opportunity to choose the color, design, cut (guy/girl) and size of your shirt. See current designs here: http://bit.ly/1gVM5Qm. (First 4 tier rewards included)

Finally, you get to name a Roly Poly! Each Pillbug saved by Phil will have his/her name featured in the credits. Here’s your chance to name that bug! (First 4 tier rewards included)

Get your very own limited edition frightened pill bug figurine. Figures are being formed on our Formlabs 3D printer (got it on Kickstarter!) These bugs are primer painted, approximately 1.5" diameter and make amazing desk companions. See image of the 3D print. (First 4 tier rewards included)

Get your very own limited edition FULL COLOR frightened pill bug figurine. These figures will be meticulously hand painted right here at our studio. A little bit more awesome than the primer version because everything’s a little more awesome in color. See image of the 3D print. (First 4 tier rewards included)

Send us a picture, sketch or verbal description for a piece of Pillville Crud (ie: totally random bonus items hidden throughout the game) and we’ll illustrate it, include it in the game and send to you a high resolution image for your very own. When you find it in the game you can say “Hey, that’s my crud!” (First 4 tier rewards included)

Design your very own level of Phil The Pill and we’ll include it in the game as a bonus feature for all the world to enjoy! We’ll provide you the same desktop design app we use to create and test our full feature levels and you and your imagination can take it from there. Your level will be credited with your name or gamer-tag! (First 4 tier rewards included)

Have a custom Phil the Pill style Pillbug avatar created of you. Send us a photo and tell us what your defining traits are and we will custom illustrate your very own Pillbug avatar. See our team photos for an example! We will provide a high resolution image as well as standard profile image dimensions for you to use however you'd like. Your avatar and a special thanks will also be featured in the credits of the game. (First 4 tier rewards included)

Send us a video of your signature dance move (we promise, we won't show anyone unless you give us permission!) and we will teach it to one of Pillville’s rolley polleys. See your dance move in the game when Phil rescues one of the poor little guys. Must be a short non-offensive loop-able dance move. (First 4 tier rewards included)

Here’s your chance to design a brand spankin’ new weapon to help Phil save Pillville! Name the weapon, describe the weapon, explain its capabilities and we’ll add it to the game! There are a few permitters we’ll give you (so that it fits within the scope of the game) but otherwise, this one’s all you! Additionally, we’ll create a pillbug in your image and feature it in on our Kickstarter page and in the “thanks” section of the app! (First 4 tier rewards included)

Conceptualize a unique game feature such as a new block, powerup or other hazard! Here’s your opportunity to work directly with our development team to create a feature that truly enhances the game experience! Additionally, we’ll create a pillbug in your image and feature in on our Kickstarter page and in the “thanks” section of the app! (First 4 tier rewards included)

Conceptualize a new baddie to be featured the game! Work closely with our development team to put your personal mark on the game and create a fully animated bad guy. You’ll be an intricate part of determining the baddie’s backstory and how he/she got in cahoots with Hank The Stank! Additionally, we’ll create a pillbug in your image and feature in on our Kickstarter page and in the “thanks” section of the app! (You may also participate in any of the other tiers that you'd like that are under $50)

Curious Media is a small-ish studio based in Nampa, Idaho. Nampa, Idaho you say?! Where the heck is that!? Well, Nampa is a beet farming town about 15 miles west of Boise, Idaho. Like us, Nampa is what you’d call small-ish. Don’t let our location fool you though! Curious Media builds games and websites for companies like Disney, PBS Kids, Scholastic, Random House, Warner Bros and more! To experience our work, spend some time at curiousmedia.com. We are more than capable of bringing Phil The Pill through to the finish line!

Our team is made up of some of the best illustrators, animators, designers and game developers west of the Mississippi.

Creating Phil the Pill gives us the chance to build something completely original, and share it directly with you! Thanks for taking time to read about the project, and we hope you're as excited as we are to bring Phil the Pill to life.

iOS - August 2014If you haven't noticed, Phil the Pill is well underway. We've finished about 80% of the app already! We just have a few features left to build, some animation sequences to create, some bugs here and there to work out and of course tweaking things based on our backers feedback! Once those tasks are complete and we finish building levels, we'll be ready to launch!

Android - September 2014We are actively testing Phil the Pill on Android, too! There are a few features that need to be built specifically for Android that we'd like to take an extra month to work out. We want to get it just right before deploying.

$75k - PC/Mac/Linux Support

At $75k we will work on a build for desktops with keyboard and controller support. The test build plays awesome on PC, but there are a lot of other things to incorporate for a polished desktop release.

$100k - Community Level Creation

Our level builder is already pretty awesome, but at $100k we will polish it for mass community use and create a portal for you to share, play and challenge others with your creations!

??? - Your Idea!

Can you think of something awesome that we could do with the game? Tell us your ideas and maybe we'll add it as a stretch goal!

Risks and challenges

One of the biggest challenges with Kickstarting an iOS/Android app is distribution of the game itself. This will play heavily into how we decided to monetize the app initially, whether its Free to Play or a Premium app. Our thoughts are that we are going to need to initially release the app for free. Beyond that, we are really not sure how we should monetize the app for non-backers. We'd like to have an open conversation with our Kickstarter backers about this and try to come up with the preferred approach of the community.

There has been a lot of controversy lately regarding free to play games and understandably so. Many free to play games are designed around the monetization mechanic and pay walls rather than around what makes for the best possible game. We can assure you that this is not and will never be the intention of Phil the Pill. The indie game industry on mobile is in a state of disarray due to free to play models and we'd love to help push it back in the right direction before its too late. We think it will require a collaboration between players and developers because without the players the developers won't have anyone to make games for! Please help us determine the best way to distribute our game in a way that is good for the players and gives us the financial success we need to continue making more games.

FAQ

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Pledge $2 or more
About $2.00

SOMETHING'S COOKING TIER-
Receive an exclusive set of Phil The Pill wallpapers for desktop and mobile devices. Additionally, we’ll notify you when the game is released (both iOS and Android versions) and invite you to download it for absolutely FREE!

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $5 or more
About $5

TAKE A BOW TIER-
Not only will we thank you for your support, we’ll ask the whole world to do the same by adding your name to the game credits! You’ll be famous and infamous! (tier one rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $12 or more
About $12

PRE-DUMP TIER-
Upon successful completion of this campaign, you’ll receive a pre-launch preview of Phil The Pill and exclusive access to our super secret development forum. As a member of our forum you are invited to share your ideas to help us finalize development of the game. This early preview includes the games first two worlds (54 levels) on either Mac or PC platforms. (first 2 tier rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $15 or more
About $15

TREASURE MAP TIER - Pieces of Crud are hidden in various nooks and crannies all over Pillville. This digital treasure map shows you where to find each and every piece of crud to give you a leg up on the competition! Each time you find one, massive bonuses will be rewarded. Bonuses will allow you to upgrade Phil faster and get many more power-ups on your quest to save Pillville. (First 3 tier rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $20 or more
About $20

ON THE WALL TIER-
Time to take your home decor to a whole new level! Get an exclusive full color Backer’s Only Phil the Pill wall poster mailed to you shortly after the completion of this campaign! (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $50 or more
About $50

SAVE A PILL BUG TIER-
Get your very own limited edition frightened pill bug figurine. Figures are being formed on our Formlabs 3D printer (got it on Kickstarter!) These bugs are primer painted, approximately 1.5" diameter and make amazing desk companions. (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $95 or more
About $95

SAVE A PILL BUG (FULL COLOR) TIER-

Get your very own limited edition FULL COLOR frightened pill bug figurine. These figures will be meticulously hand painted right here at our studio. A little bit more awesome than the primer version because everything’s a little more awesome in color. (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $99 or more
About $99

CREATE SOME CRUD TIER-
Send us a picture, sketch or verbal description for a piece of Pillville Crud (ie: totally random bonus items hidden throughout the game) and we’ll illustrate it, include it in the game and send to you a high resolution image for your very own. When you find it in the game you can say “Hey, that’s my crud!” (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $125 or more
About $125

LEVEL ARCHITECT TIER-
Design your very own level of Phil The Pill and we’ll include it in the game as a bonus feature for all the world to enjoy! We’ll provide you the same desktop design app we use to create and test our full feature levels and you and your imagination can take it from there. Your level will be credited with your name or gamer-tag! (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $250 or more
About $250

PILLBUG ME-
Have a custom Phil the Pill style Pillbug avatar created of you. Send us a photo and tell us what your defining traits are and we will custom illustrate your very own Pillbug avatar. See our team photos for an example! We will provide a high resolution image as well as standard profile image dimensions for you to use however you'd like. Your avatar will also be featured in the credits of the game with a special thanks. (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $350 or more
About $350

DANCE MASTER TIER-
Send us a video of your signature dance move (we promise, we won't show anyone unless you give us permission!) and we will teach it to one of the roly polys. See your dance move in the game when Phil rescues one of the poor little guys. Must be a short non-offensive loopable dance move. (First 3 tiers rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $1,500 or more
About $1,500

ARTILLERY AUGMENTER TIER-
Design a new weapon for Phil the Pill. Name the weapon, tell us what it looks like and what it does and we will create it and put it in the game! Weapon must be balanced and work well within the game mechanic. We will also create a special Pillbug version of you to be featured on our Kickstarter page as well as a special thanks section on the app for your contribution! (All $50 and below rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $2,500 or more
About $2,500

PUZZLE MASTER TIER-
Conceptualize a new level feature that enhances the puzzle experience! Maybe its a new special block type, or a special powerup. Work with our team to create something that enhances the game! We will also create a special Pillbug version of you to be featured on our Kickstarter page as well as a special thanks section on the app for your contribution! (All $50.00 and below rewards included)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $3,500 or more
About $3,500

BADDIE DADDY TIER-
Conceptualize a new baddie to be featured the game! Work with our team to put your mark on the game and create a fully animated bad guy. We will work with you to determine their backstory and how they got into cohoots with Hank the Stank and his brood. We will also create a special Pillbug version of you to be featured on our Kickstarter page as well as a special thanks section on the app for your contribution! (All $50.00 and below rewards included)